Monday, 28 January 2008

Child health fears over high salt levels in sweet foods

"Many sweet foods popular with children contain potentially dangerous levels of salt which are putting their health at risk, a campaign group warns today.

Consensus Action on Salt and Health (Cash) said new research had found salt in desserts, sweet drinks and snacks of which parents were likely to be unaware.

Cash is calling on parents to check labels carefully and stop buying very salty foods for their children. The charity also urges manufacturers to lower the amount of salt they put into children's foods and to provide clear salt labelling to help parents make informed choices.

Eating too much salt is linked with high blood pressure, which increases the risk of strokes and heart disease.

Cash's research into food products on sale this month found that an Asda rolypoly fresh 114g pudding had 1.1g of salt - 55% of the recommended daily maximum for under-threes and 36% for four- to six-year-olds. A Heinz tinned treacle sponge pudding had 0.8g of salt per quarter of a tin - 40% of the average daily maximum for a child aged one to three and 27% for a child aged four to six.

Professor Graham MacGregor, Cash's chairman, said research showed children with high-salt diets had higher blood pressure, which was putting their health at risk in the longer term. "We want to see all manufacturers doing everything they can to reduce the salt they put in children's food," he said. "If they really cannot reduce the salt content in food eaten by children to reasonable levels perhaps they should consider ceasing production?""

It is high time manufacturers stopped ladling salt into food. And it's high time Professor MacGregor informed the public that obesity is caused by sodium retention and water retention and that obesity is most safely and speedily reduced by cutting down on salt intake.